


He Is So Bright

by Kaesa



Category: Girl Genius - Phil and Kaja Foglio
Genre: Backstory, Challenge Response, Fluff, Gen, Jossed, Kid Fic, Mad Science, POV Third Person
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-11-15
Updated: 2009-11-15
Packaged: 2017-10-03 00:12:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaesa/pseuds/Kaesa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eight-year-old Gil, who has recently broken through as a Spark, escapes from his quarters.  Klaus has to hunt him down before anything bad happens to him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	He Is So Bright

**Author's Note:**

> The title is from the saying "He is so bright his father calls him son." Which is ironic, considering why this fic is no longer canon-compliant as of the "Tarvek Sturmvoraus, Boy Detective" storyline.
> 
> This was a response to a really informal challenge: my beta told me to write Klausfic, and my roommate told me to write something about candy canes.

Klaus had thought that slaver wasps were the most terrifying menace he might have to face as an established benevolent dictator, but he was beginning to realize he'd been wrong.

Gil had broken through just a few weeks ago, and Klaus had been so busy with negotiations between Dr. Donowitz and the Margrave of Prague that he had yet to Spark-proof their private quarters on the Castle. And now the playroom was empty, with only a few colorful drawings of lockpicks on the floor. Lockpicks made of crayons.

And there were so many things an eight-year-old boy and his pet... bug... lobster... thing might be up to on an airship city.

Dangerous things.

Klaus sprinted out of the room. "You two!" he shouted at the pair of Jagers who'd been assigned to make sure no one tried to kidnap Gil -- not that many people outside of a few guards _knew_ about Gil yet, but it was best to be safe. "Where's my son?" he demanded.

"Oh! Iz dat all?" one of the Jagers asked. "Vell, ve figure, he gots to come out some time, vy not today?"

"**_Where is he?_**" demanded Klaus, grabbing the Jager by the collar. "**Tell me or I'll use you for spare parts!**"

"De galley, Herr Baron! He vent to de galley!" said the Jager.

The other Jager took a poorly-scrawled map out of his hat. "I drew him dis map so dat he knows vere he iz goink! Iz good, no?"

"Shut op, Zudok, you gonna get youself _thrown off de_ _Kestle!_" his companion snapped, but Klaus paid them no mind.

Fearing the worst for Gil and his construct -- knives, grease fires, hungry Jagers -- Klaus rushed down to the galley. The terrified staff were useless and Klaus was ready to just glare them all to death, when he spotted one blue antenna stuck around a corner, listening.

"AFTER THAT CONSTRUCT!" he shouted.

"EEP!" It skittered away, and a mad dash ensued.

After much confusion -- several of the kitchen staff _were_ constructs, and were presented to the Baron with glee -- Klaus made the kitchen staff go back to what they'd been doing, and managed to sneak up on the one-eyed construct by himself. He followed it silently to a storage room.

When he opened the door, the construct squeaked and huddled in one corner. In the other corner was Gil, fast asleep, one sticky hand grasping a half-eaten peppermint stick, and using an unopened box of marzipan cogs for a pillow.

"Gilgamesh?"

He opened one eye, then sat up straight. "Father?" The sleepy grin disappeared, and he put the box of candies down as though it had just come out of a forge. Klaus wondered how the boy thought he was going to talk his way out of this one.

For that matter, how was _Klaus_ going to get out of this one? He could rule a continent, but he couldn't control his own son? He couldn't risk the boy thinking he was smarter than his own father; Klaus had seen enough Sparks overthrow their parents -- some for good reason -- and he generally blamed a poor upbringing.

No, he decided, Gil wasn't going to think he'd got the better of his father. "Congratulations, Gil. You managed to pass my first test."

Gil's eyes were wide. "What?"

"Next time, though, I'd rather you didn't ruin your supper. Come on." Klaus scooped Gil up in one arm, and put the candies back on the shelf.

"What about Zoing?" Gil asked.

"Zoing?" Klaus frowned.

"Skrr?" said the little blue construct hopefully.

"Oh. Well, he can walk.  He's got legs," said Klaus. Zoing's antennae sunk.

"Only two," said Gil sleepily. "The other four wouldn't _fit_."

Klaus laughed. Gil was getting _so grown-up_. He couldn't help but be proud. And a little sad, really; he was always away, but this was so much more _important_ to him than Prague. He wished he could be a better father.

Well, at the very least, he knew he'd _have_ to find some better guards.


End file.
